That One Time Chat Noir Became Marinette's Biggest Fan
by Bad Luck Bug
Summary: So Chat turns into a cat, picked off the streets by his Lady, and Marinette can't figure out where all this attention from Adrien is coming from.
1. A Cat by Any Other Name

Part of Marichat May; **Day 9 - Bell Collar**

It could get worse, and he's not going to pretend like Murphy's Law doesn't hold shackles to his wrists. He told Adrien. Plagg _told_ him he's sick, he needed to be healed, and what does Adrien do? Gets ear of LB and floors it.

So when he transformed into Chat Noir and leapt off for the roofs, you can imagine his surprise when his efforts sent him maybe five feet off the ground before he careened down, only to land perfectly on his feet.

He lifted his hands - raven clad fur paws - and turned his head in time for a new tail to flick his nose.

"No way!" He exclaimed— yowled a meow into the school.

"Ew!" Chloé sneered, lifting her hands up and away as she pointed. "Sabrina! Get this filthy stray out of my sight!"

"Chloé!" He meowed.

Sabrina took off her bag and swung. It connected with his side, and he didn't need any more of an incentive to scat.

Sabrina screamed as he dashed by her. A pitch that grated painfully against his senses. The moment he could, Chat hid under a bench, peering wide-eyed at the giants stomping above. His heart raced, he needed to _calm down_. The sounds, _the sounds_. Too much. He closed his eyes, and after two awkward attempts, cupped his ears. Calm down. _Calm down._

 _Ladybug_ , the name flew by and his eyes snapped open. Alya gestured excitedly with her phone to Nino as they passed. "That was incredible! And I got grade A footage. Ladybug's at the top of her game," she cheered, "smashed Laughter Lines in seconds! Views on the Ladyblog are up! "

"What kind of villain sends victims into a laughing fit? Not cool." Nino grumbled.

Alya patted Nino's shoulder with a mock-pout. "Still sulking?"

He shrugged her off. "My side still aches, ugh, I need to lie-down."

She laughed. "If you say so."

Chat slumped onto his paws. Ladybug's fine, thank goodness. He slowly rose to his feet, amazed by the sense of balance, and shook himself off. The bell at his neck surprised him, he pawed at it, noticing a light collar attached to it. Okay... at least he looks owned. Does that make this any better? ...anyway.

First he tried to simply release the transformation, dead-end. Then he searched for some form of Miraculous to remove, but found nothing.

He extended his paw and claws, shouting, "Cataclysm!" (a mew echoed through the trees in an empty park) He admired his new little weapons, but nothing more.

Chat growled. He scratched the ground, pouncing around, shredding grass till he collapsed from exhaustion. He flopped onto his back and called, "Ladybuuuug!" Chat pouted, murmuring, "your precious kitty's an idiot." He got up to go begrudgingly back home, and started at a giggle.

"Never seen _that_ before."

"Marinette!" He shouted.

"Eek!" She fell from a crouch to her bum. "N-nice kitty."

His ears folded despite himself. "Sorry," he mewed. He sat and waited, trying to seem as innocuous as possible.

She tilted her head. He lied down onto his paws, and mewed.

Suddenly Marinette cupped her cheeks. "Aww!" She glanced back and forth before taking out a sandwich and plucking off a bit of cheese from the contents.

"Marinette," squeaked a small voice, Chat's ears flicked to it. "I'm starving, and you're wasting your lunch break with a kitten." A red being slumped out her purse, and he stopped breathing. "Typical."

Marinette rolled her eyes. "Tikki, Chat Noir didn't even show up." She haughtily raised her nose. "Your argument is based on flawed logic."

"Marineeeeette!" she groaned. "This Caaaat!"

"Hush, eat my sandwich if you're so desperate."

The red being—Tikki sprang into her bag with delight, earning a fond smile out of Marinette. Then she looked at him, still holding the cheese. Marinette lowered it invitingly. "Here kitty, hungry too?"

Chat dumbly took the morsel, green eyes locked with blue, he chewed mindlessly as she beamed. He's sure his tiny kitten heart couldn't handle this, legs jello, he would have fallen had he not already been down. Her hand went from a small daze-inducing scratch at his cheek, to an electrifying caress from his head to back. Muscles involuntarily reacted, and suddenly they were magnets. His back arched into her, but his legs refused shortly after, and he flopped back onto his chin.

She laughed behind her hand, a gentle melody to his sensitive ears. Eyes lidded, he gazed at her in a stupor.

Then a bell rang, and it scared him to see the color drain from her face.

She tugged her pigtails. "I'm late!"

"Marinette!" he cried after her. "Wait!"

"Bye kitty!" she shouted over her shoulder.

"No!" He got to his feet and dashed. "I'm Chat Noir— Adrien, Ladybug!" _Ladybug_. His heart skip a beat in the midst of a samba. She crossed a street with cars and thunder-herds of footsteps and he leapt back, curling away as he cried. "Ladybug! Help me, I've turned into a cat!" She turned out of sight. "Marinette!" He panted. His mind whirring around the double meaning. She's _real_. Ladybug is real, he can touch her, and she's sat behind him from the start! And she can help him, she has to be able to, she can do anything!

Given a moment he knew school had to end eventually, and she would come waltzing home. He admired the Boulangerie Patisserie before him and sighed, contented. She lives next to the school, she sits behind him. So close, so real, so touchable, and he's not getting over it anytime soon.

With the coast cleared, he trotted to her home doorstep and sat adamantly at the entrance.

Thunder cracked.

His ears folded down, the first droplet hit him, and it rained...

But that's okay. She'll show up, fix him - and really - being wet is the least of his worries.

It's when the sun began setting did he realize she probably wasn't coming back. The rain only worsened, he sneezed, shivered, and regretted not searching for her instead. Chat had long since curled into himself. But this is okay. No one's expecting him anyway. Gorilla isn't picking him up today, nothing scheduled, all that _is_ expected is that he'll walk home, and do the same tomorrow.

Easy.

No worries.

Ladybug will fix it.

* * *

Chat startled awake at a shove. His sense of balance betrayed him and he twisted to lie on his paws, a swift movement that jump started every new ache in his body. He groaned before blinking up at— Marinette!

"Kitty!" Marinette harshly whispered, drenched and panting. Her pigtails drooped from the rain, she crouched over him, and he suddenly felt very awake upon spotting a cut at her cheek.

"What happened?" Chat chirruped.

She lifted him onto her lap, warmth, and he almost drifted back to sleep. _Safe_.

"You're soaked," she breathed.

"Hypocrite."

When she jittered and struggled to stand, he felt a zap to wake and try to look her over. The angle proved that effort fruitless, so he impatiently waited as she entered her home.

"Marinette," her mother called from a room over. Marinette planted herself against a wall, hidden, except for her face around the corner. "I heated up some dinner after you said you'd be home soon. It's in your room. How was that project you had to stay after for?"

Marinette said a bit too cheerfully. "Fine! We - uh - got a lot of research done on our particle physics paper."

Even in his sleep riddled state, that sounded far from right. They went over particle physics weeks ago. Still. Ladybug's a good liar. That's something to keep in mind.

"Okay, good," her mother said, a smile in her voice.

When her footsteps faded, Marinette tip-toed down the hall, and wrapped Chat into a cozy towel ball before creeping to her room.

When she set him down, he protested out a meow, but obediently stayed as she ruffled his fur dry. It enveloped his being, and only bits of light cracked into his cocoon before she left him settled in a pile. He peeked out to catch her slumping over an open drawer, her clothes dripping, making a puddle on the wood floor. His heart withered at the sight. Chat needed to help her, but was too tired himself. Helpless, he watched her. A longing pushing down his chest as he cursed his new body.

"Is it still bad?" Tikki asked, circling Marinette.

"Yeah," she rasped.

"You shouldn't have forgotten the Lucky Charm."

He blinked. An Akuma? But she handled Laughter Lines fine, Alya said.

Marinette pulled things from her drawers in quick succession. "It's fine. No one else got hurt." She groaned. "Except the tinsy little power outage over three fourths of the city."

"Marinette..."

"It wasn't fair. The Inductor shocked my yo-yo."

Inductor? A second akuma?

"Where was Chat Noir?"

Chat huddled away into the towel.

"MIA," Marinette puffed, pushing from her knees to her feet, holding a set of pj's. "I hope he's okay."

What?

"Why do you say that?" Tikki questioned.

"That cat loves being a superhero." She smirked. "More so than me. I don't think he'd disappear for no reason." Marinette glanced at Chat. And he clung to some far gone hope that she recognized him, but found no glimmer of familiarity. "He's not moving, but keep an eye on him, Tikki?"

Tikki nodded and Marinette disappeared down the trapdoor.

* * *

"I think the kitten's upset." Tikki announced as Marinette stepped in, a towel hung over her shoulders. She gritted her teeth with each step, reaching the top to look at the kitten; the picture of despair. Ears folded, he stared at the floor in a daze, a sad black puddle on her chaste. She wondered briefly if pets could be akumatized.

"Oh no, I forgot! He got drenched too!" Marinette put a hand to his body. "Is he sick— geez, he's freezing! I'm such a ditz, Tikki, what do I do?!" Her body protested wildly, but Marinette lifted the limp kitten to her chest. "He's gonna die!"

The kitten mewed indignantly, but it came out cracked.

"Relax, Marinette," Tikki soothed. "Give him a warm bath too, maybe that will help."

Marinette didn't respond. She flew down the stairs and shut them behind the washroom door. Only pausing when she had grabbed the doorknob, and it sent an electric jolt from her head to soles. She turned the shower dials with a wince to the temperature she used earlier, before lowering the kitten in.

"Please be okay," Marinette begged his half hooded gaze. She propped his head onto a dry sponge momentarily before rolling her sleeves. Using a cup, she doused him in warm water. Only daring to breath when a pur reverberated around the tub walls. Given a few minutes the kitten padded to the deep end of her slanted tub and plopped down. Keeping his head above water, he mewed through a pur and pawed in her direction.

She giggled, relief evident.

In his playful efforted, the bell at his neck jingled.

"A collar." Marinette turned the bell in her hand, quirking a brow at the design she knows she's seen elsewhere. "But no name." She dropped it. "It's a fancy bell. You have to belong to someone..."

And his tail sparked. Panic seized her heart like her ribs discovered how to give it a hug, when the current of electricity traveled across his body. Limbs awkwardly thrown about the tub, _Chat Noir_ took its place, smiling up at her.

Marinette sucked in a deep breath - and inherently _knowing_ \- Chat Noir whipped the towel from around her neck and pressed it to her lips before she screamed her lungs into raisins.

Her hands came to his, yanking the towel away to hiss, " _you're a cat?_ " She flailed her hands. " _An actual cat?!_ "

"If m- my lady purrfers it."

She spun the towel into a whip.

"No! N- no wait!" His hands drew between them. He watched his arms move like watching a movie in slow motion. Lethargy kicking in from the cold. "My kwami, P-Plagg, he was s- sick. I transformed, and I shouldn't have, because _what a transformation_. I'm sorry, this- this isn't how I wanted to find out either..." He growled at the inelegance of it all. "Agh, I'm an idiot. But... um," his hands fell to his lap, splashing slightly, and she didn't know those leather ears could droop. "I kn- know you're not happy, but I'm glad to ha- have found you, Ladybug."

She huffed, hands pushed onto her knees as she looked away. She's trying to be upset, but he's shivering, and being sincere. That added to her exhaustion brought a sigh. Best to deal with this later.

New objective in mind, she cupped his cheek, heart flopping like a land bound fish when he nuzzled his nose into her touch. "Well... if anyone were to find out, I'm glad it's you too." Marinette praised herself for not pulling away, and instead went to his neck. What she thought was a safer area to check for fever, until his hair stood on end, and he looked at her like—

"You- you're still freezing," she told him before her tongue got any dryer. "I know the suit's waterproof, warm up through the shower."

He waited.

"Well?"

"Oh," he toyed with the knobs. "Privacy?"

She rolled her eyes. "You're fully clothed, Chaton. Besides, I leave, and my parents ask why I left the water running."

He shrugged, drawing the shower curtain to a close. "No peeking!"


	2. Things You Should Not Do

Marinette sat on a rug against the wall beside the bath. Wincing as she curled, drawing her legs into a hug, she rested her head atop her knees.

Their intimate familiarity as a crime-fighting duo, a golden-clad line of trust that accompanied leaving your life in another's hands, carried on strong in this domestic setting. In an odd sense, it also left her insecure. Somewhere between Ladybug and Marinette, she wanted to maintain a professional distance, but now that he's here... she wanted to get to know him better. But the bigger problem is how he would accept her.

Marinette yawned as Chat Noir began a whistling tune.

She's not... Ladybug. She can't be Ladybug without a mission at hand, an Akuma to fight. Battle mode and... normal mode are two different Marinette's.

Chasing off sleep, she lifted her head when the water stopped. Chat took the liberty of grabbing a nearby towel, scrubbing his hair roughly till it reformed its usual mess.

The air ran, as if hiding away in her lungs when Chat knelt down to her height. "I'm sorry."

"...huh?"

"You took on two Akuma's alone." His smile looked rough around the edges. "I know you're capable, but that must be exhausting..."

"Oh," she softly grumbled, cupping his cheeks and squishing. "Stop beating yourself up. You turned into a cat, I think it's fair to say we've both had our fair of trouble today." Marinette rolled up to her feet as he stood- and promptly fell forward. Catching her under the arms it came to his attention that, it's a position they've encountered many a time, but in her loose pajamas and lack of pigtails it strikes him that this is her.

"Thanks." She exhaled a small strike of adrenaline away.

Suddenly, Chat embraced her, picking her feet off the ground and nuzzling into her hair.

A shiver ran down her spine. "Chat?"

"I don't know what I expected." He softly swayed them left and right. "But you're perfect."

She burned beet red. Whoa, whoa, hey, what?

"How— Chat I'm not, I'm really not." She shoved at his chest, but only got enough space to see his neck. So, trapped, she traced nervous figure eights over his suit. "Nobody can embody perfection, Chat, I certainly don't. Give it time, I'm-" she side-glanced up to his eyes, choking on the glowing adoration pouring over. She traced circles faster. "I'm a mess. I trip over stray papers twice a day, and bump into objects I've walked by since birth."

"Marinette," he gingerly set her down, then laid a hand to her shoulder. "I'm a newly emerged hermit. How awkward you look is probably how awkward I feel."

She tilted her head, slowly asking, "how new?"

"Homeschooled till about a month ago."

Okay, she conceded with a bout of incredulity. "but you... have friends right?"

"Yeah," one of his ears folded back. "I wish it were easier to make friends, but it's so difficult for me to keep a connection.. Sometimes we'll have things in common, but," he frowned, but it looked more like a pout. "How does small talk even work?"

She chuckled.

"Doon't laaaugh."

Which inadvertently made her laugh harder, more from the relief that her cat is as worse off as her.

A red blur zoomed into the room. "Marinette, it's almost your bed—" Upon meeting Chat, Tikki froze on the spot, falling from the air like the toy she desperately hoped she appeared to be. Chat snatched the little ladybug from her fall, observing as she rolled over in his palm.

Meanwhile Marinette held her side, laughing and letting go small pained, ow, ow ow's as she did.

* * *

Up in her room, all Chat's energy locked onto his feet and eyes. What's Ladybug's room like? Designs, projects, sketches. He took a second longer staring every time he found something new.

"Chat Noir!" Marinette chased, not nearly as fast, to keep his nose away. "You better be sitting on the chaise!"

Marinette's longevity took a harsh blow. There. Standing before her desk was a ramrod Chat Noir. Was he admiring the hard work she put into those gloves lying beside a thread and needle? ...She could pretend, because why wouldn't it make any self respecting cat speechl—

Breathless, he shone a smile that her exhaustion wanted to hide up under the covers from. "What is this?"

"Well." She pointed, all the finesse of a home designer explaining renovations. "It's a wall."

"And what's on the wall?"

"Paint."

A pause.

"It's a pretty cut and standard set up."

"Any particular reason Adrien Agreste is on the paint on the wall in your room?"

Her pitch kicked up a notch she didn't know existed before tonight, yet slowly she shook her head, "nope."

Patient, they remained at a standstill. Her staring at the wall, him staring at her.

She relented first, "okay! He's a... a fascination of mine?"

Chat positively blossomed, "you mean a crush!?"

"Shh!" she hissed.

Every cell in his body vibrated, his tail flicked, and he wondered if she liked wearing matching outfits?

"One day I'll be normal around him..." tipping into mourning, she lowered into the desk chair.

He leaned against her desk. Right. They don't talk. Much. So...? "Fell for his looks?"

And the red of her face never got a break. "You're seriously discussing this with me?"

"I'd like to know what I'm competing with, Bugaboo."

Bugaboo, Marinette begged her heart to calm, she's too young for a heart-attack.

"It's not his looks if that's what you're hoping to beat."

"Really?" He shifted meaningfully closer to her wall of model poses.

"Adrien's sweet," she murmured, whisked away by a memory. "he... gave me a second chance when I didn't deserve it. And now that I can look past who I thought he was, it's a miracle how he can be friends with Chloe. But it's because of that tolerance that I love it when he's simply being himself. Having fun. HIs smile is so..." Unable to meet his eye, her words stumbled along, "a-anyway, don't look too much into it. I don't think he even notices me." She balked a laugh. "Anytime we talk I turn into a stuttering mess. Can't control my words around him. But I'm still try...ing..."

She'd wanted to gauge his reaction, but was taken aback.

Chat cupped a hand to his mouth, what wasn't covered pinkened to a red that continually deepened, and at his lashes...

Placing a hand to her desk, she readied to stand. "Are you crying?"

"No," he sharply inhaled. And sobbed. Mouth still covered, other hand curled into a fist for support, he cried, "will you go out with me!?"

Recovery at a crawl from taking in Chat's landslide emotional stability, his words hit her maybe three minutes later. "I don't even know who you are!"

Chat grabbed his ring.

"Hold it you!" Marinette grabbed his hands. He sniffled. "Think about this!"

"I have. And I need you to know."

"Two days." Gripping his two hands in one of hers, Marinette held up two fingers. "Let's not rush this anymore than we already have. I need time to process. In two days, if you still want to tell me, you can."

His eyes ping-ponged from her, the posters, his ring, then back to her. His shoulder drooped. "Okay..."

Her earlier wound forced Marinette to bite her lips hard as a distraction when she leaned back.

"You're still in pain," Chat said into a handkerchief. When did he...? She peeked past him at an open drawer. Of course...

She took deep breaths, now rather hoarse, "if I move wrong, yeah. I thought I'd figured out how to avoid agitating it," she cringed, digging her nails into the bottom of her chair. The wound slapped her side like a hand of fire. "Hurts."

Chat brought her hands to lace around his neck, and scooped her up. "Nothing you need to do before bed?"

His eyes were still kind of pink, but a genuine concern in his reassuring smile made her speechless anyway. She shook her head. He walked up to the loft, and tucked her into bed, grasping her hand and placing a farewell kiss as he pulled away.

"Sweet dreams."

And he squealed.

"I've always wanted to do that! Did it look cool?"

Marinette groaned.

* * *

The next day Adrien checked his watch. Standing outside the Dupain-Cheng's residential door. She's usually late, right? Running all the way to her seat. With that injury, it's highly doubtful her habits would land her anywhere near the bell. But his lady is resilient. So he'd wait, offer an arm to help her along. Adrien curled fists under his chin. She likes him! Just two days and their feelings would be mutual!

Two whole days though!

Maybe there would be a way to shed light on who he is earlier? Or maybe she would fall for Chat during this lengthy period of time, he thought with a sly smirk. They're the same person, just different circumstances. If Chat acted like Adrien, she'd swoon in an instant. Or maybe vise-versa? And when they fall in love, she'll adore both sides of him! Like Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen!

"Bye Mom, bye Dad, love you!" Marinette's voice echoed to his ears.

The door flung open, bounced off the rubber of Adrien's shoe, and smacked Marinette.

"Ow!" She cried.

"Ohmygod, Marinette!" Adrien fussed as he rounded the door.

She rubbed her forehead, blinking up at him. "Adrien?" Maybe she's hallucinating...

"I..." he twiddled his thumbs. "I was waiting and..." he reached for her. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay?"

"Oh... oh no! I'm fine, you're fine- I mean! Are you fine?" She took a deep breath. "... alright, are you alright?"

The sheer panic she exuded urged him to lift her fringe and check. "Maybe it hit a little harder than I thought..."

"Gah!" She swooped back. And her face contorted in agony. Hands hovering over her side, she willed the pain to pass.

"Ah! Um-" Adrien, circled her. "Is there anything I can do?" He grabbed her backpack. "I'll hold your things."

Nerves overpowered by distress, she nodded gratefully. "Thank you."

"No problem." He offered an arm.

She blinked. "Y-you don't have to do that. I'm not limping, it's just if I twist wrong..."

"...gotcha." Well... there goes that fantasy. "So are you doing anything later today?"

"Me?" she asked, then lightly slapped her chest. "Uh, I just needed s-some felt to make the pattern for a design I'm playing around with."

"Can I come?"

"Yes!" She eagerly agreed. Then countered, "a-actually it'll be really boring. Just browsing crafting store things..."

Adrien shook his head. "Anywhere I'm with you couldn't possibly be boring."

She might have stopped breathing. Not that Adrien noticed, humming a joyful tune as he plotted their evening together. Maybe he'd surprise her, bring along a picnic basket packed with goodies, and when they pass the park; _oh, what a beautiful day, we might as well._

Ah, darn... But he needs to woo her as Chat. She already... already... likes...

He side-eyed her— and Marinette's skin was flushed from head to toe. A cute little pink down the tip of her nose, and his heartbeat thrummed uncontrollably. He did that so soon?! T- to her? Who's jabbed at his every flirt?

This is going to be their reality after she finds out.

He should get her accustomed to his presence. Say something! Make it normal, please make it normal!

...small talk! The weather? No, don't mention that till the picnic, but what else? This isn't working. Abort—

Chat!

Channel Chat!

He opened his mouth- and a chirruping noise flicked off his tongue. Adrien slapped a hand over his mouth.

"D-did you say something?" Marinette tilted her head.

Adrien vigorously shook his head.

"Lovely... Lovely weather today!" she spread an arm toward the sky.

Okay, his lady is ruining everything. "Yeah..." he slowly agreed.

* * *

A little section of felts in the craft store, rainbows of colors. Marinette measured them along her chest, spread over her arm. Saying she likes to choose different colors for the sleeves, front, and back, so as to not mix up the templates.

He admired her eye for detail. Silent in watching her becoming enthralled in the selections.

Then, half mumbling, Marinette tossed a green at him. Blue. Red, and suddenly there's a pile.

Hands to her hips, accomplishment in full, Marinette exhaled at the collection in his hands.

He shifted. "Done?"

The color drained from her face. " **Adrien!** " She reached, but he pulled the felts away. "I am so so so sorry! I got lost in the moment and—" she tried again, he lifted them above her head. "I'll hold them."

"Think about your injury."

She frowned, not one to be looked down upon. "They're felts. They weigh about nothing."

He cocked a half smile. "I cannot, in good conscious, allow you to hold any more than _nothing_ , _about_ would be pushing it."

She wanted to argue, he could see it- feel it from that third Ladybug sense of his. But his magic influence of crush status left her with the one option of walking away, saying, "thank you."

Leaving the store, Adrien steered them toward the park. Brainstorming ways of segueing to their lunch out. He could offer his over-shirt, laying it down in lieu of a blanket. And the sandwich shop nearby...

"Aww, cute kitty!" Marinette gushed.

His cheeks tingled.

Then he saw it. A box with bright green eyes peering over the rim.

The kitten mewed.

Adrien wanted to be disappointed, but the need to meet this new arrival proved too strong.

Coming down to their knees, Adrien and Marinette met five pairs of curious eyes. Coming into this sudden attention, they mewed. Pawed awkwardly, at times falling with shaking baby muscles.

"Aww," Adrien cooed, rolling one over, and scratching under it's chin. "Who would leave these precious furballs here?"

Marinette cradled one in her arm, allowing it to chew her finger. "Someone must have left them." She pulled out her phone. "The pound should be able to pick them up."

"The pound!" Adrien grabbed the remaining four into a hug. "Have you _seen_ those commercials? They need a home. Now." Stubborn like it was an art, he sat up straight, face unflinching.

The last thing she expected was an outburst of any kind from Adrien. How could she upset him? An angel reincarnate, framed by innocent kittens.

"Absolutely!" She blurted. "They need a home, and we should find those homes." A beat passed. "Right?"

A broad smile crossed his face. "Right!"

"Um," she shyly voiced. "In the meantime..."

He regarded her curiously.

She fumbled with the kitten's paw. "I'd love to hold onto them all, but my parents won't allow this many kittens."

"Not a problem. I'll take these." He cuddled the one's he'd trapped. Two white with grey spots, black with white down the nose, and pure white, all with blue eyes.

She lifted hers, black with vibrant green eyes. And her brow knotted.

"Anything wrong?" Adrien asked, his head atop a sea of fluff.

"Oh! Um..." She turned her kitten toward him. "Does he look... familiar?"

The kitten mewed.

Adrien regarded him. Scruffy unkempt fur, tiny fangs; the definition of kitten. "Not particularly?"

"Well..." she slumped, rolling her hand vaguely. "You see, I found this kitten yesterday, and they look similar except..." Marinette rubbed down his neck. It purred, and Adrien waited with baited breath. Suddenly she scratched the back of her head, chuckling, "you know what! He's probably just a cat."

"What happened with the kitten from yesterday?" he tried not to be obvious.

She got to her feet. "There was... ah... nothing much."

Adrien dropped his litter into the box, and hefted it along as they huddled into a trembling pile. "I wouldn't say nothing, there had to be something. Was he cute?"

A chill rippled across her skin, and mischief danced in Adrien's eyes.

She made figure eights along the kittens fur. "As cute as cats can be I guess..."

"But this one topped them all?"

She snorted. "That's giving him credit."

"I suppose it would be humble to call him handsome? Kind?"

"Pompous, arrogant."

"Meowch."

She rounded on him - as fast as her injury would allow - mouth agape, eyes wide. The kitten mewed up at her a moment before she uttered, "you!"

Equal parts anticipation and fright, he grinned wildly. "Me?"

She dropped her head into the kitten's fur, "nonono," and demanded, "don't give me that face!"

"What face?"

"That face that- that proves it." Words that couldn't decided if they were upset or angry.

And he wasn't helping. "Proves what?"

"UGH!" When she stomped away, he followed.

"My lady-"

" **Absolutely not!** "

He was not laughing. "Just hear meout."

"No!"

"That's a little unfair."

"Bad luck sorta encompasses that."

* * *

Back at Adrien's home, Plagg hovered over the new recruits.

"Alright maggots." He tapped a toothpick onto his hand like a baton. "There's one thing we treasure in this stronghold."

Adrien, lying on the couch, gave up on taking the kittens from Plagg about an hour ago.

"It could've gone better," Adrien noted, speaking more to himself.

"It is what we have hewn into our belief system," Plagg continued, oblivious to Adrien's plight. "The one thing we need to survive."

"I should have planned this. Like... in the midst of our most epic battle, we're trapped with the villain while in our civilian forms. I reveal my miraculous, she has a moment of awe, and I risk my life to save hers."

"Camembert." The other kittens wandered, while the pure white remained, curled into a ball and napping. "I understand you have yet to try it, but I believe you'll learn to love it as I have."

"We should talk, straighten things out. Plagg!"

"No!" Plagg clung to the white kitten.

"Plagg, I need to see her."

"They won't be kittens forever, Adrien, this time is important to me."

Adrien crossed his arms. "They won't even be ours forever, they'll go to a good home in maybe a week."

"All the more reason we should stay!"

"Plagg, claws out!"

* * *

Yep this is late, but balcony visits comes next- hopefully before midnight.


	3. How Not to Handle it

**Day 17 - Balcony Visits**

How dare he.

The thump she'd been expecting landed on her balcony. She glared at the ceiling— not even an hour! He didn't give her two days like she asked, let alone a day, and here he is an hour later!?

Marinette fumed all the way up, carrying a bag she'd prepared earlier.

"Marinette," Chat beamed, then raised a placating hand. "I know what you're going to say..."

"No, you don't." And she tossed bird seed into the air.

"What-?"

Pigeons swarmed.

Muffled sneezes filtered into her room as she descended the stairs.

Tikki giggled, laser pointing the kitten about the room.

"I love a kittens uncontrollable instinct to chase these things."

Marinette sat in her desk chair, and flopped over her desk's surface, watching the kitten tire itself out with wary eyes herself.

"Mom said we could keep her. You alright with a roommate?"

"Only if we can dress her up in those silly cat outfits."

Marinette pursed her lips. "Why do you like teasing her so much?"

"If you knew what I've been through, you wouldn't question it."

Marinette shrugged. "Fair enough."

The sneezing retreated.

She flicked a pencil, and watched it roll down the slope of her desk before repeating. Her anger refused to stay. To fester. No matter how much Marinette willed it.

As Chat Noir and Adrien he took advantage of her ignorance to his secret persona. Then again, she didn't give him the chance for it to happen otherwise. And her cat could never help himself. Maybe it's a mercy he revealed himself two days before she asked him to.

Feigning irritation, she kept him at bay, afraid of facing him. Because... how _embarrassing!_ She groaned. She made such a fool out of herself! Had she known they were the same person—

The thump returned.

She rushed up with the bag... and there sat Chat Noir in a box. A hand curled under his chin with big doe-eyes. He meowed, and she cocked an arm back.

"Wait!" He held up the white kitten from earlier.

On her bed inside sat Tikki with anxious eyes, the kitten laid curled around her.

Marinette's brows lowered, she crossed her arms. "That's playing dirty."

"It worked." He stepped out of the box, tail curling around his leg, he hugged the kitten to his chest. "So, I could have been more elegant..."

" _Should_ have been."

He took a swift step closer. "But you understand, right? Let's say I did wait, wouldn't you have been more upset?"

"Well..."

"I mean, I've had a bit of time to rationalize it, but really... I couldn't resist." He blurted out a laugh. "You should have seen your face!"

She slammed the trapdoor shut. When he heard the click of a lock he panicked.

"H- Heeey, Marinette!" He scratched at the wood. "Listen, I'm soooorry."

He heard hammering on the other side and jerked back, scandalised. "Why I never..."

* * *

Come night time Marinette wondered what the ramifications of skipping school for the next five years would be.

"You need time." Tikki patted Marinette's fringe. "Talk to him tomorrow with a levelhead. I'm sure you two can work it out."

"Yeah right," she muttered, laying her head sideways at her desk.

"Marinette," Tikki lightly reprimanded.

"No, I mean-" she jabbed her chin toward the window.

Tikki spun in place. Catching Chat Noir at the window, fogging the glass and drawing a heart struck through by an arrow.

Tikki grumbled, flew to the window, fogged it, and drew a cat with x's for eyes.

Chat gritted his teeth, backing as far as he could from the little ladybug.

"Let him in."

"Marinette," Tikki argued.

"It's fine, he won't sleep if we can't talk."

"So?"

" _I_ won't sleep if we can't talk."

Tikki undid the latch and Chat crawled cautiously inside. Marinette met him halfway.

"Love those posters." He cupped his chin, eyebrows doing a little dance as he winked at her.

And suddenly she _was_ angry. "You sit there and chip in questions about yourself." She jabbed his chest. "As Chat Noir _and_ Adrien, just- just- how dare you!"

"Whoa, okay, wouldn't you have done the same thing?"

She growled, "yes."

Head dropping, he slapped a hand over his eyes.

"But you're the idiot who did it, so I have a right to be upset!"

"What do you want me to say!? I can't apologize anymore, it doesn't work on you."

"This is why I needed time!" She threw her arms up. "Because... because I am so mad! You absolutely refuse to give my fight time to simmer down, lighting it up higher every time you poke your stupid paws by, and I am just... _so mad_."

"But... why? We talked, it's all even." He swayed his hands left. "I turned into a cat." Swayed right. "You had to take on some odd akuma." Left. "You found out said cat was me." Right. "And I revealed myself early— which you agreed was totally okay by the way."

Arms tightly crossed, she pouted at the wall.

He poked her arm. "My lady."

Filling her lungs, she did her best to ignore the warmth on her cheeks.

"Bugaboo." He stepped closer, bringing up an arm. "Marinette." And he enveloped her into an embrace. "You're not still mad?"

"I am." She muttered into his suit. "So mad."

He nestled into her hair, purring. "Yeah?"

"Yes."

He sighed dreamily. "Okay."

* * *

Returning home from conferences held out of the city, Gabriel took in the kittens scurrying in and out of rooms, and the one climbing down stairs to greet him.

The white ball of fur nudged his ankle.

He pinched a growing headache between his brows.

"Not again."

* * *

Author's Babble

Thank you all! Your reviews kept me motivated! and trust me, writing a story a day is getting tough. Thank you so much everyone for reading!


End file.
